Chapter 89: Holy Night Showdown (Confrontation)

『The Dark Priest…!?』

Alicia’s shocked voice rang out at Aymok’s declaration.

In the temples of the four great elements—wind, fire, water, and earth—a priest or priestess is chosen to bestow blessings upon the people in honor of each elemental deity. Alicia herself had been chosen as a priestess in that same way.

And yet, the temples of Light and Darkness were supposed to have been long forgotten by the people. No priests. No priestesses. That’s how it was supposed to be.

In fact, when I received the blessing at the Temple of Darkness, the place had been completely deserted.

『This power is the gift granted to me by the god. With this power, I shall bring transformation to this nation. Those who object—prove it through strength. Those who would follow me—bow your heads.』

Aymok’s words rippled through the crowd, spreading confusion. Then slowly, scattered around us, the delinquents began dropping to their knees, some even prostrating themselves, lowering their heads in submission.

It was an utterly bizarre sight.

『Didn’t you say the brainwashing effect was supposed to be weak…?』

『Perhaps… I underestimated him. To think it’s gone this far…』

Before long, Aymok and the two of us were the only ones still standing.

『…Hmph. So you still refuse to kneel, Kamishiro Souta. As expected… you are the man I placed my faith in.』

Aymok, now addressing us via telepathy, confirmed our presence.

『Very well, then. Let us begin the entertainment. Step up onto the stage.』

With an exaggerated sweep of his arm, Aymok invited Souta forward. Meeting each other’s gaze, we gave a firm nod, then began walking across the parking lot where the delinquents remained frozen, heads bowed.

The makeshift stone stage was a rectangular platform, maybe ten meters along its longer side. Now, only the three of us stood upon it.

Around the stage, the delinquents stayed motionless, heads still lowered.

“Well done coming here, Kamishiro Souta. By defeating you—the one who caused the downfall of the previous Ouroboros—I shall demonstrate my power and raise the beacon of salvation.”

Aymok had abandoned telepathy and now spoke aloud. At some point, the roar of motorcycle engines had fallen silent, leaving nothing to interfere with conversation.

“Forget that. I’ve kept my promise. Let Suzuka go. Now.”

“…Very well.”

With a snap of Aymok’s fingers, Suzuka, who’d been kneeling like the others among the Ouroboros gang behind the stage, suddenly leapt upright.

Her wide, confused eyes darted around until they locked onto us. Then, without hesitation, she sprinted straight to Souta.

“Souta-san!”

Without slowing, Suzuka threw herself into Souta’s chest.

“I’m sorry…! I’m sorry, Souta-san! I… I…!”

Unable to stop her tears, Suzuka clung to Souta as emotion poured out of her. Souta gently patted her head, trying to calm her down.

“It’s okay, Suzuka. I get it. You’re not to blame. So don’t worry about it.”

While watching the two of them from the side, I turned back toward Aymok. There was something I needed to confirm while I had the chance.

『Ikuto-san… let me speak to him.』

Alicia addressed me through telepathy.

I nodded, adding Aymok to the target of our telepathic link.

『Aymok Haltor Dakryhipos!』

At the sound of his full name echoing in his mind, Aymok’s expression finally cracked. The confident smile faltered, surprise flickering across his face for the first time.

“Telepathy…? You’re the woman from the academy…?”

『My name is Alicia Hereni Minstia. I, too, come from the same world as you.』

As Alicia introduced herself, I shrugged off my coat. Beneath it, the thin white ceremonial robes I wore were exposed to the biting winter air.

“That garb… and you bear the name of a Spirit God, just as I do… You… surely… you are the Water Priestess.”

『…Are you truly a priest of Lord Dakryhipos? The Temple of Darkness was abandoned. I saw it with my own eyes. And no human could survive in a temple located within demon lord territory!』

“My clan has served the Demon Lord for generations, aiding in bestowing the blessings of darkness upon the demonkin. The temple was abandoned not because there were no priests, but because a temple is unnecessary so long as its priest lives.”

『You’re saying… you aided the Demon Lord—the enemy of humanity!?』

“Our ancestors were persecuted by the followers of Light. We fled to that land to survive. Therefore, we owe humanity nothing. If anything, it is only right that we repay the Demon Lord’s protection with loyalty. That, to us, is what it means to be human.”

『...However!』

"Well, that no longer matters… In any case, it’s all in the past. The Demon Lord was slain by the Hero, my entire clan scattered and vanished… Had I been in that world still, I’d likely have been executed for the crime of aiding the Demon Lord."

『…I understand your circumstances. I have neither the right nor the desire to judge you. However, as one who serves a Spirit God, I cannot ignore you inciting the people and even attempting to overthrow this nation. As a fellow servant of the gods… why would you do such a thing!?』

"Precisely because I serve the god. I intend to bring salvation to this world, one devoid of the god’s blessings."

『That’s none of your concern! This world has struggled, experimented, and finally shaped itself into the nation it is today. It may not be perfect, but outsiders like us have no right to meddle in it!』

"The sight of people, abandoned by the gods, striving to govern themselves through their own strength… I do find it admirable. But there is no longer any need for them to struggle. Now that I have come to this world, they have nothing to fear. I shall be their guiding star."

『Why do you look down on them like that!? What makes us any different from the people of this world!?』

"I am a representative of the god. Blessed by the divine, it is only natural and inevitable that I should guide the unblessed toward salvation."

『That’s wrong! Whether someone bears a blessing or not doesn’t make them superior or inferior!』

"I see it differently. If you disagree… then stop me. Prove me wrong through strength. Yes… let’s make a wager."

『A wager…?』

"If we fight, and you defeat me, I will withdraw entirely from this world."

『…Are you serious?』

"I do not break my word. If needed, we can seal it with an oath spell."

An oath spell. A binding magic where both sides swear upon terms, making it impossible to act against that oath. It’s said that breaking it renders a person a mindless husk.

『And… if you win?』

"If I win… I shall take you."

『…What!?』

"I’ve been troubled, you see. Even if I become king, I have no heir to carry on my rightful bloodline. A priestess would be neither lacking in magic nor lineage. I’ll grant you the honor of bearing my child as my wife. What say you? Hardly a bad offer, is it?"

"Don’t screw with me! Like hell I’ll let you!"

I couldn’t help but shout at Aymok, thrusting the World Tree staff in my hand toward him threateningly.

『…Ikuto-san. Please… leave this to me.』

Alicia whispered to me, so softly that Aymok wouldn’t hear.

I hesitated for a moment, then gave a small nod.

『I accept your wager. Now… let’s invoke the oath spell.』

"…Very well."

With a snap of Aymok Haltor Dakryhipos’s fingers, a parchment scroll and quill appeared in the air between us.

“I, Aymok Haltor Dakryhipos, hereby swear. Should I be defeated in this battle, I shall cease all interference with this world.”

The quill moved on its own, transcribing his spoken words onto the parchment in some foreign script.

『I, Alicia Hereni Minstia, swear. Should I be defeated in this battle, I shall become subordinate to Aymok Haltor Dakryhipos and obey him.』

Alicia’s declaration was likewise recorded onto the parchment.

Despite the unease tightening in my chest, I decided to trust Alicia and watch how things unfolded.

『Ikuto-san, stretch your right hand straight toward the parchment.』

Doing as Alicia instructed, I switched the staff to my left hand and extended my right.

“Contract of Oath!”

In the next instant, the parchment shone brilliantly, then dissolved into glowing particles and vanished.

Seeing this, Aymok smiled with clear satisfaction.

“Kuh kuh kuh… What an unexpected prize. To think I’d win the Water Priestess herself!”

“…You seem pretty confident for someone who hasn’t even fought yet.”

Though, of course, he wouldn’t actually win anything.

Realizing the trick Alicia had pulled, I couldn’t help but let out a bitter smile.

The one who had sworn the oath was Alicia—not me.

So even if we lost and Alicia was bound to obey Aymok, she had no physical body to command. And as the one moving her body—me—the oath wouldn’t affect me at all.

Not that we had any intention of losing.

“…Hold on a second. Wasn’t I supposed to be the one fighting Aymok? When did you two decide all this on your own?”

Having calmed Suzuka and gently pulled her back, Souta now stepped in, interjecting into our conversation.

“Sorry, Souta. Seems like there’s some history between these two. Let me take the first round.”

“You’re seriously telling me to just stand here and watch you get handed over to him if you lose…? Like hell I can let that happen!”

“Even if you say that…”

Watching our exchange, Aymok gave a relaxed, entertained smile.

“I don’t mind. Come at me together if you wish. It may make this little diversion somewhat enjoyable.”

Hearing that, Souta immediately jumped on the opportunity.

“Fine by me! I’ll take you up on that. Don’t blame me when you regret it!”

“H-Hey, Souta!”

“You said yourself—you can’t afford to lose, right? Then stop overthinking and let’s do this together, Ikuto.”

That deliberate provocation… knowing Aymok’s personality, in this situation, he’d almost certainly allow it and even relish it.

I didn’t know how much Souta could keep up in a full-blown magical battle, but… I appreciated the gesture.

“…Yeah. Got it. I’m counting on you, partner.”